by Matt Slovin, USA TODAY Sports

by Matt Slovin, USA TODAY Sports

And the New York Yankees reliever had an uphill climb in front of him after a verbal spat with his teammate, renowned closer Mariano Rivera.

Rivera asked Chamberlain, who was chatting nearby, to keep it down as he wound up a Saturday press conference. But Chamberlain took offense, as after Rivera finished speaking, he had something to say himself.

Given a night to reconsider his fiery tone toward baseball's all-time saves leader, Chamberlain stood his ground. He was given a public forum to perhaps apologize to Rivera on Sunday but chose to go in a different direction.

"There's no need to apologize," Chamberlain told reporters before Sunday's series finale in Kansas City. "For what? It's over with. It's done. It's really not an issue in the first place."

But when asked about the incident after Saturday's game, Rivera seemed taken aback that a teammate would speak to him so condescendingly in the public eye.

"It's amazing," he said, before adding that the pair would handle it like "grownups."

Later, the two used the Twitter feed of the Yankees' public-relations department to bury the hatchet, at least in the social media realm.

Rivera is the rare athlete who's almost universally revered, even by the news media. Chamberlain, who added Sunday that he "wouldn't change anything" if given the opportunity, should probably take note.